Bridgeland: Work on Cypress Creek trail phase to begin in the fall

Published 9:50 am, Saturday, July 28, 2012

Cypress Creek Nature Trail is within the historic Cypress Creek area bordering Bridgeland. The new addition, expected to open next year, will bring the existing trail up to two miles.

Cypress Creek Nature Trail is within the historic Cypress Creek area bordering Bridgeland. The new addition, expected to open next year, will bring the existing trail up to two miles.

Bridgeland: Work on Cypress Creek trail phase to begin in the fall

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Design work has started on the second phase of Bridgeland's Cypress Creek Nature Trail, an eventual six-mile path through the historic Cypress Creek area bordering the development's northern edge.

Construction is expected to begin this fall, with the new phase opening next year. The addition will bring the trail to two miles and will mirror construction of the first phase, opened in 2008, with a 10-foot wide path made of decomposed granite. Like the first phase, this next portion will have interpretive signage noting the area's history and the many indigenous mammals and migratory birds that can be seen in the area. The signage in the new phase is under design and will be installed in 2013. Both phases wind through a canopy of oak trees and other woods.

"The entire 900 acres of the Bridgeland Cypress Creek Greenway has been portioned into three zones that echo the natural character of the area - woods, lakes and prairies," said Tricia Brasseaux, design project manager for Bridgeland. "This second portion will conclude the woods section of the trail and Phase 3 will feature a lakeside landscape."

In addition to interprestive signage, which developers hope will prove useful to teachers and students at a nearby elementary school under construction now in Bridgeland, the Cypress Creek Nature Trail also has a fishing dock, and in the near future, will feature offshoots of the main trail that will be dedicated to mountain bikes.

Like much of Bridgeland's landscape, the Cypress Creek Nature Trail has a dual function, adding to the community's infrastructure with a system of naturally landscaped swales, constructed weirs, open water pools and naturalized areas that treat and retain storm water runoff.